Funeral Service for Annette Cortez will be held Friday, Dec. 2, 2005 from Carver Park Baptist Church, Waco, Texas. Dr. Gaylon Foreman, Pastor Officiating. Burial, Fort Lincoln Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

On Sunday, November 27, 2005, God called Annette Anita Brown-Cortez from Labor to Reward at Hillcrest Hospital in Waco, Texas.

Annette was born June 24, 1958 in Washington, D.C. to the Late Gwendolyn Alice Stanmore. She received her education in the Washington D.C. Public School System.

Annette worked for the local Job Corp and the General Service Administration in Washington, D.C. In 1992, Annette relocated to Waco, Texas to begin employment with Methodist Children's Home.

On June 17, 2000, she was united in Holy Matrimony to Derrick Cortez. Although never blessed with children of her own, caring for them was not just a job but her calling. She was a dedicated guardian of her nephew, Rashaud Lee Whitfield.

Annette was never to busy to lend a helping hand, never to broke to share with someone in financial need. No human being was beyond her compassion. She was a pillar of support to many. Her shoulder supported many tearful souls; her outreached arms, welcomed those in despair; and her voice brought calm to many troubled hearts. She gave so much to so many and was always there to share a comforting smile. She was a faithful, loving and dedicated member of Carver Park Baptist Church, Waco, Texas.

She leaves to cherish her memory, her husband Derrick Cortez; step-son, Derrick Cortez, Jr.; step-daughter, Tina Suggs; four sisters, Charlene Copeland Brown, JoAnne Gibbs, Brenda Goodwin and Beverly Whitfield; one brother, Dwayne Whitfield; one sister-in-law, Monica Whitfield; two brothers-in-law, Nathaniel Goodwin and Curtis Brown; three step-sisters, Dorothy Wilson, Betty Williams and Shirley Jones; two step-brothers, John A. Stanmore, Jr. and Jerry Stanmore; one niece, Tia A. Gavins; three nephews, Nathaniel L. Goodwin, Rashaud L. Whitfield and Myles L. Whitfield; one great-niece, Natalie Branham; her father and mother-in-law, Joe and Kathie Hughes; three sisters-in-law and five brothers-in-law; adopted niece and nephews, Erin and Derrick Sherman and Chris Thompson; a host of relatives and friends.

Last words: "One hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.